From under the sea to Radio City Music Hall, St. Timothy School students to open for Rockettes this Christmas season

Bella Bailey

Multimedia Correspondent

An ensemble cast of 50 middle school students from St. Timothy School, Union, was selected to perform, Dec. 4, at Radio City Music Hall, New York, as the opening act for the Radio City Rockettes “Christmas Spectacular.”

Andrew Mason, an eighth-grade teacher at St. Timothy School and music minister at St. Timothy Parish, saw the show last year in New York with his family and was inspired when he saw another school open the show.

“There was a group up there that sang to open the show, and they were good, and I thought ‘give me a couple of years, my kids will be there, I really want to apply to that,’” said Mr. Mason.

However, it did not take a few years for the kids to become ready for this opportunity. Their quick progression throughout the course of “Little Mermaid Junior,” their spring musical, led Mr. Mason to believe now was the time to send in the audition tape.

“We had such a good show, so after we came off the show, I sent an email to all the parents. We sent in a 30-second to a minute-long audition tape, Madison Square Garden group vetted us and said, ‘you’re in,’” said Mr. Mason.

“It was exhilarating,” said eighth-grade student, Molly, about when the cast found out they had been selected.

“There were people jumping in the hallways, super excited,” said Johnny, another eighth-grade student.

To tell the students about their exciting selection, Mr. Mason had arranged a scavenger hunt at St. Timothy’s open house. The game led each student back to Mr. Mason, where he was able to tell them the exciting news.

“Once they found that out, it was big news around here,” said Ashley Rehkamp, principal. “Lots of screams, and giggles, and parents are just as excited.”

Eighth-grade student Emily said, “There wasn’t that big of a chance that we would get it, so it was really exciting that we actually did. We worked really hard for this; I think we deserved it.”

The group of 50 students consists of those who participated in the “Little Mermaid Junior” production and others who are interested in singing.

“We’re very passionate about this. We love to sing, and it’s great that we get to share our talents with them,” said Molly.

Johnny echoed the sentiment, saying, “All of us love singing, we love performing, and especially seeing the Rockettes. It’s a great opportunity.”

The students will spend the next several months learning to perform five Christmas classics: “Somewhere in My Memory,” “O Holy Night, Christmas Canon,” “A Child is Born in Bethlehem,” and “Angels We Have Heard on High.”

Mr. Mason, despite being the one to organize the auditions and applications, credits the students for this opportunity. “It’s really all of their work and how well they have grown and how much work they’ve put in,” said Mr. Mason. “That’s what really makes this special is the growth from where they were to where they are now.”